The World Got In The Way
by Opalfire
Summary: What really happened the night Lily and James died? Where were their friends and enemies? This is my attempt to figure that out. A series of stories about the different people, from the night the Potters died until a little bit afterward.
1. In Your Eyes

I really shouldn't be doing this right now, I'm supposed to be studying for my Algebra 2 exam tomorrow. Oops. Oh well, I'll do fine, and this is the first chapter I've ever written. Yay!!! Hope you like it, please don't flame. Then again, I did just run out of matches…

The World Got In The Way Chapter One- In Your Eyes 

James Potter sighed with relief as he finished writing his report for the Daily Prophet. This would be his last article for a while. Tonight was the night he and Lily, along with their baby son Harry, were going into hiding. He was so thankful that they could finally disappear, because the dark wizard Voldemort was after his family. He loved Harry and Lily with all his soul, and if Lord Voldemort got either of them, he didn't know how he could go on. Lily was his everything--she had been there when his parents died, and had been the one to comfort him. Sirius tried to help, but he had trouble being, well, serious. If he wasn't smiling, laughing, or planning a new prank, something was very wrong. The day his parents died was the day James realized that he couldn't live without Lily, that she was his one true love, and how lucky he was to have her there. Everything about her was perfect. She was beautiful, with fiery red curls and snapping emerald eyes. Her personality shone through those eyes, sparkling, glittering. Her eyes put the most beautiful jewels to shame. Whenever James felt the world was too much for him to bear, he could lose himself in those eyes, washing away the anguish and heartache of these terrible days.

_Love, I get so lost, sometimes_

_Days pass, and this emptiness fills my heart_

_When I want to run away,_

_I drive off in my car,_

_But whichever way I go,_

_I come back to the place you are._

James snuck into his house quietly through the back door. Lily was singing softly in the nursery, trying to get Harry to sleep. Walking slowly to the room, James stood in the doorway, just watching. Lily was sitting in a rocking chair, gently going back and forth with the rhythm of the song. Her eyes were full of love, watching the baby that had become the center of their lives. In the green room, she looked like a rose in bloom. Finally, Harry fell asleep and Lily's song came to a close. She stood and placed Harry in the crib, trying not to wake him. She turned to the doorway, and gave a low cry. Fear flashed through her eyes, then vanished with her smile. "James!" she cried softly, running to give him a hug. "Don't do that to me!! You scared me!" He smiled, giving her a soft kiss. "Sorry Lils" he whispered. Her bright green eyes fastened on his soft brown ones, as she laughed, saying, "Alright I forgive you… this time." James could feel all the worries and pain wash away as he smiled back.

_All my instincts, they return_

_And the grand façade, so soon will burn_

_Without a noise, without my pride_

_I reach out from the inside_

_In your eyes- the light, the heat_

_In your eyes- I am complete_

_In your eyes- I see the doorway to a thousand churches_

_In your eyes- The resolution of all the fruitless searches_

_In your eyes- I see the light and the heat_

_In your eyes- oh, I want to be that complete_

_I want to touch the light,_

_The heat I see in your eyes_

Softly, they slipped out of the nursery, miraculously avoiding waking Harry. The little one had a set of lungs the size of bagpipes, and could be just as loud. Making their way down a small hallway, the two reached their small living room, where they spent most of their time. James sank to the soft red couch with a groan, pulling Lily down next to him. He was tired, for it had been a hard day. Looking up at him, Lily said worriedly, "Are you alright, love?"

"Of course", he replied, "It was just a tough day. There was another attack."

She gasped. "On who?"

"The McKinnons, Lils. I'm sorry honey." James watched helplessly while the pain and anguish once again appeared in her eyes as hope fled. "They didn't make it."

Tears welled up in her dazzling eyes, as, with a small sob, she buried her head in his shoulder. James wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight as she cried. Sitting there with his lips pressed to her hair, a few tears of his own leaked out. The McKinnons had been some of the Ministry's best Aurors, and some of the Potter's closest friends. How many more would they lose before this war was over? How many more would fall? James was tired of pain, tired of death, only wishing the war was over. His heart ached constantly for all the friends they had lost. The McKinnons, the Bones', the Prewetts… the list went on and on. Apart from Lily and Harry, James had little. Many friends were gone, paving the way for those still alive. They never knew who was going to go next. Lily meant life, a reason to live. The young woman sobbing in his arms was all that kept him going in these dark times, his own angel.

_Love, I don't like to see so much pain_

_So much wasted, and this moment keeps slipping away_

_I get so tired_

_Working so hard for our survival_

_I look to the time with you to keep me awake and alive_

_And all my instincts, they return_

_And the grand façade, so soon will burn_

_Without a noise, without my pride_

_I reach out from the inside_

Her sobs grew increasingly softer, slowing until they stopped altogether. After awhile, James loosened his arms as Lily removed hers from around his neck. Tenderly, he asked, "Feel better?" Without a word, she smiled slightly, a smile tinged with sadness and pain. Lowering his face to her up-turned one, James kissed her, trying to convey all his feelings in that one small action. His love, his pain, his hopes, and his dreams all made up that gentle kiss, as he once again held her close. Breaking away from the kiss, they merely sat, happy in each other's arms. Time ticked by as they remained together, neither knowing nor caring how long they were there. A soft knock sounded on the door, disturbing their peace. Their arms slipped to their sides as they stood and walked to the door. James pulled it open, letting in the Secret Keeper, Peter Pettigrew. Relief shone in their faces as they returned to the living room, ready to perform the spell. In the light of the fire, one woman stood, slightly apart from the other two men. Her eyes glowed with an emerald fire as she waited to start, watching the man she loved.

_In your eyes- the light, the heat_

_In your eyes- I am complete_

_In your eyes- I see the doorway to a thousand churches_

_In your eyes- The resolution of all the fruitless searches_

_In your eyes- I see the light and the heat_

_In your eyes- oh, I want to be that complete_

_I want to touch the light,_

_The heat I see in your eyes_

_In your eyes…_


	2. Best of Intentions

I'm BAAAAACCCCKKKKKK. And reposting this AGAIN. Yes, I know I've been gone for almost a year. For some reason, I couldn't write a thing. Grrrr….. Well anyways, another chapter is on the way (YAY!) but I figured I'd fix this one first.

Disclaimer- I own nothing, do you hear me? Nothing!

Chapter Two-Best of Intentions  
  
The Potters had been in hiding for around a week now, and they were finally beginning to feel safe. Right now, Lily was sitting on the living room couch next to James, with a crackling fire to warm the chill October air. Her legs were curled to the side, and she was leaning against James's muscular chest, with his arms wrapped around her waist. They smiled, watching Harry crawl around on the rug. A magical barrier had been erected to protect him from the fire. It was a perfect scene of happiness and peace.  
James whispered, "We always wanted a little boy, Lils. I didn't think we even thought of names in case we got a girl."  
Laughing softly, she replied, "No, because we wanted a girl second, so she could have an older brother to protect her, and Harry could have a baby sister."  
James said, "We had out whole life planned out. I was to be the famous Quidditch player, and you were going to travel with us. Then, when we had out first child, I was going to retire and get a different job. We would have everything we ever wanted."  
  
_I had big plans for our future  
Said I'd give you the whole world somehow  
_  
Lily's smile faded. "How much of that has come true? You had that injury, that awful injury, and all of our plans changed." While playing Quidditch for the Wigtown Wanderers, James had been hit by both Bludgers simultaneously. One had broken both his legs, while the other fractured his skill and left him unconscious. Through some miracle, he had caught the Snitch a second before and had been right above the Puddlemere United Seeker. The girl had caught James as he toppled from the broom and had carried him safely to the ground. Although James had been magically repaired in the span of five minutes, he stayed unconscious. No spells can instantly mend brain damage, and the Bludger had severely bruised his brain. It was a week before he woke up, and even then he was wan and pale. He had to stay in the hospital for a month. After that, his reflexes, although still quick, were far too slow for a Seeker. James was forced to abandon his Quidditch dreams.  
  
_I tried to makin' good on that promise  
Thought I'd be so much further by now_  
  
James was now a journalist, writing articles for the Daily Prophet. While recovering from his injuries, reporters had swamped his hospital room. Although he was a fairly new player, James had a presence and personality that was impossible to miss. He was also one of the best Seekers in the league, easily beating most of his opposition. During a particularly busy afternoon, James had snapped, yelling, "Okay, this is too much! If all of you leave me a list of questions, I will write up everything you want to know and owl it to you." Well, the reporters were shocked, but what could they do? At least they'd get their answers. James did as he promised and owled out the papers. About fifteen minutes later he was deluged with replies, most of which read something like this, "Mr. Potter, we were expecting a list of questions and answers, not a full article! That article, though, was one of the best I've seen in a long time. Would you please consider a career as a journalist? If you like we can give you a position here." So James had accepted a job at the Daily Prophet. He, of course, preferred to report on Quidditch, but few articles were given to sports. Far more was written on the Dark Lord, Voldemort, his killings and his movements. Lists of victims were printed, and they grew larger daily. James could hardly bear to write the articles on Voldemort. So many of his friends had already been lost to the man. But James did what he had to to earn money for his family. The pay was respectable, but nowhere near what his Quidditch salary had been.  
James sighed. "Lily, I'm sorry our plans didn't work out. If only I hadn't gotten hurt, we would be so much better off now."  
  
_Never could build you a castle  
Even though you're the queen of my heart  
But I've had the best of intentions from the start  
_  
"James, honey." She began as she pulled away slightly. Looking up into his soft hazel eyes, she continued, "Don't blame yourself. Your accident was just that...an _accident_. There was nothing you could have done. I'm just glad you're okay. For awhile, they thought you might not wake up."  
"I know you don't think it was my fault. A lot of people think I could have kept from getting hurt, though. You've read the articles, too, you can't deny it. You know as well as I what they say, 'James Potter has been admitted to St. Mungos with two broken legs, a fractured skill, and considerable brain damage. Maybe next time he should wait until all the Bludgers are boxed before celebrating a win.' 'Now the main question-where were Potter's famous reflexes then? Are they only there until he catches the Snitch?' Could I have dodged at least one Bludger?"  
  
_Now some people think I'm a loser  
'Cause I seldom get things right_  
  
Lily cut him off, twisting out of his arms to look at him in the face without craning her neck, "James, if you're waiting for everyone to go one way or another, it's not going to happen. All that matters is what you think." She smiled suddenly, eyes glinting mischievously as she finished, "and what I think, of course."  
James burst out laughing. "Of course, what you think means the world to me."  
The smile disappeared as Lily's green eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Are you making fun of me?" She asked accusingly.  
"Not at all, Lily-heart, not at all." He replied. The fact that he was still fighting to control his laughter unfortunately forced any shred of seriousness out of his reply.  
Lily continued mock glaring at the man as he shook with suppressed laughter. Her face remained impassive until James lost control and began laughing out loud again. A corner of her mouth twitched upward, and she giggled, throwing herself at James. He almost fell over, but recovered quickly.  
"Oh, James, I do love you." She whispered into his chest, arms wrapped tight around him.  
"I love you too, Lily." He said instantly serious. "Always have, always will. Never forget that."  
  
_But you make me feel like a winner  
When you wrap me in your arms so tight  
Please tell me you will remember  
No matter how much I do wrong  
That I had the best of intentions all along  
_  
Lily suddenly jumped. Something had grabbed her knee! Looking down, she saw Harry, who had crawled over and pulled himself to his feet using the couch. Reaching down she picked him up and set him on her lap, cooing, "Aw, Harry, did you feel left out? Poor Harry." Lily began to tickle him, and the infant started to squirm and giggle, swatting at her hands until the glint of firelight on her rings caught his eye. Babbling happily in baby talk, he stretched out his pudgy hands, reaching for the rings on Lily's now still hands. Grasping her left hand, he pulled it in front of his face and began to inspect her engagement and wedding rings with a very absorbed air.  
James watched Lily and Harry play, smiling at the sight. Then, as Harry inspected the rings, the smile began to fade as James again remembered the past. This time, thought, the memory was a happy one. James had searched for weeks to find the perfect engagement ring for Lily. It had taken so long because he didn't want any common ring. The one he bought had to be special, unique, just like the girl he bought it for. James hadn't really wanted a diamond- neither he nor Lily was a big fan of diamonds. They preferred things with a little more color to them. For Lily, with her vibrant green eyes and blazing red hair, a diamond simply couldn't compare. Finally, James found the ring in a small antique shop in Diagon Alley. It was an odd red-gold, made of three strands twisted together. At the top sat a large emerald heart, sparkling and glittering in the midst of the dusty store. While the stone was large, it was not so big as to be gaudy. It was perfect.  
That night, James had taken Lily out to eat at the Thousands Miles Restaurant, an "international eatery" in Hogsmeade. The Thousands Miles was famous for having delicacies from all over the world, from Columbia to Russia. There was even a section of the menu reserved exclusively for the foods astronauts take to space. The main attraction, though, was a display that covered an entire wall. Every minute, the image would change. Each picture was of a gorgeous landscape, everything from the Egyptian Pyramids to the snow tipped Alps to the Hawaiian waterfalls. It was a beautiful place to go. During dinner, a particularly nice picture was shown. A single iceberg floated on a midnight-blue sea. The sun shining down brought out the blue and green streaks hidden deep within the ice. When she saw it, Lily said, "Antarctica. I've always wanted to go there. It seems so…amazing."  
Reaching over the table, James took her hand, leaning towards her as he said, "Then we'll go. Someday, we'll get there, I promise." Then, taking a deep breath, he asked, "Lils, do you love me?"  
She replied, "Of course I do, James, you know that."  
He sank to one knee in front of the now wide-eyed Lily, taking both her hands in his. Softly he whispered, "I love you too, forever and always. I can't imagine not having you in my life. I want to have you by my side for eternity. Will you marry me, Lily Evans?"  
Tears welled up, making her eyes sparkle even more than usual, as she nodded, stammering out, "Yes…oh my god, yes…I love you James."  
He began to laugh in both relief and pure joy as he let go of her hands, reaching into his pocket for the ring. Flipping open the boy, he took the ring out, sliding it onto the heart finger of her left hand. It fit perfectly, the emerald glittering against her ivory skin, almost as if the ring was made just for Lily.  
Staring at it in awe, she whispered, "Oh, it's beautiful," before James swept her up into a tight embrace.  
_  
__I gave you a ring  
And I promised you things  
I always thought we'd do_  
  
Antarctica. He had promised they'd go to Antarctica, and the two were finally going to go this year, leaving Harry in Sirius's care. James and Sirius had begged for weeks to get Lily to let Sirius baby-sit Harry. (For some reason, she didn't think it was quite safe) She had only given in, albeit reluctantly, when Remus had promised to help. The Potters had even booked passage on the Beach Rose, the first ever cruise to Antarctica. If all had worked out, they would have been packing that very instant for a month on the high seas. Just when it seemed one of their plans was to be completed at last, things came crashing down about their ears again. Dumbledore's spies had found out Voldemort's newest hit list. The Potters were top of the list, the highest priority to kill. The cruise was cancelled and they went into hiding.  
  
_But my best-laid plans   
Slipped right through my hands  
To show my love for you  
_  
As Harry finished his examination of Lily's engagement ring and moved on to the wedding ring, she looked at James with an expression of wry resignation. Noticing his faraway look, she nudged him, asking concernedly, "Is anything wrong?"  
He shook his head slightly, slowly focusing on Lily. Raising a hand, he smiled as he smoothed away her worried frown. "No, nothing's wrong. I was just thinking."  
Lily sighed suddenly, confessing, "Well, I think something's wrong. I don't know how much more I can take this constant fear, this not being able to trust anyone, and most of all, this hiding. I want to do something, not just sit around here, saving my own skin. I could be helping people."  
"I know, Lily-heart, I know. I feel useless too. But what can we do? If we leave hiding, we'll probably die, but if we stay hidden, others will die. This was supposed to be the best possible solution."  
_  
__And if you could read my heart  
Then you'd know without exception  
It was all with the best of intentions_  
  
Although it was obvious Lily was still upset, she got up, scooping Harry into her arms. "C'mon darling," she drawled, "It's baby's bedtime."  
No sooner had she finished than the front door exploded open in a blaze of light. James leapt up crying, "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"  
She clung to him in desperation, wailing, "No James, no! I won't leave you! I can't!"  
He grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her lightly as he said intensely, "You must! There's no other way! Go now, before it's too late!" He pulled her close, kissing her hard on the lips for the last time, then spinning her gently round and giving her a little push to the hall. She glanced over her shoulder as she broke into a run, her emerald eyes wide in a pasty white face. James was watching her go, and as she looked face, he said one final time, "I love you, Lily-heart."  
  
_So here I am asking forgiveness  
And praying that you'll understand  
Don't think I take you for granted  
Girl, I know just how lucky I am  
Though you deserve so much better  
You won't find devotion more true  
'Cause I've had the best of intentions  
Girl, I've had the best of intentions  
Yes, I've had the best of intentions loving you_


	3. Love

Yay new chapters!!!  I'm so proud of myself for FINALLY getting back to this story.  Now I can't even remember why I stopped writing in the first place, but this is the first real piece I've gotten out in almost a year.  My god this feels good… Oh, by the way, this song is named "Love" and it's from Disney's Robin Hood.

Chapter Three- Love

Lily turned away from James, tears streaming from her eyes as she ran with Harry.  Somehow, she could tell that that was the last time she would ever see James.  If they did not kill him, the Death Eaters would surely take him prisoner, to be interrogated and questioned for the whereabouts of his friends.  How long could he possibly live in the Dark Lord's dungeons?

She sped into Harry's nursery, closing the door quietly behind her, in hopes of escaping notice for the time being.  Pulling out her wand, she magically locked herself and Harry in.  It couldn't possibly hold Voldemort for long, but who knew what would happen?  Perhaps help was on the way.

She turned and strode carefully to the center of the room, where she laid Harry in his crib.  Her baby…would he survive the night?  Looking into his face, she vowed that as long as she was alive, no harm would come to him.

Tears blurred her vision as she thought of James.  Harry looked so much like he had as a child.  Lily and James had grown up together, having been born two days apart to parents who were closer than family.  There was not a time Lily could remember, happy or sad, when James had not been there.  True, they had not always been best friends.  The closeness of their childhood years had evaporated in their beginning Hogwarts years, when James had become a completely different person.  His womanizing also did nothing to impress her.  Lily had almost hated him during those years, but the memories from home had always stopped her anger.  She smiled through her tears now, thinking of James as a boy, a boy who had been so full of life and mischief that he could always make her laugh.

_Love, it seems like only yesterday_

_You were just a child at play_

She would never forget all the fun they had as children.  Living next door to one another meant that they spent every day together, from sunrise to sunset.  They had learned to roller-skate and ride bikes together.  They had held joint birthday parties, since they had all the same friends.

Lily's smile spread into a grin as she remembered the time they had, without the knowledge or permission of their parents, tried to build a tree house in the huge oak tree situated between their two houses.  Things were going great until…

"Hey Lils, hand me that board, would you?" yelled James from his perch in the tree.

"But James, its practically twice your size!" the tiny redhead protested.

"Don't worry so much!" he laughed, shaking his messy black hair from his eyes as he flashed her the grin that would one day wreck havoc on the heart of any girl nearby.  Lily just looked at him, then shrugged and started passing the plank up to him.  As soon as he grabbed it, though, James slipped, crashing through the branches to break his arm in two places.  Although she felt bad about James getting hurt, Lily could only laugh at his clumsiness, the look he had had on his face as he fell, and, of course, that fact that she had been right.  They had fun no matter what.

Then Lily had gotten her Hogwarts letter.  As excited as she was about being able to go to a school for magic, her happiness was far from complete.  How could she go to a school without James?  There had never been a time when she didn't have him nearby.  He had been a shoulder to cry on when her grandfather died, and had protected her when her older sister Petunia tried to beat her up.  It took all the strength she had not to tell him where she was going, but Lily knew that if the magical world was hidden, it was not up to her to expose it.  In the end, she couldn't even bear to tell James she was going away.

Then came September first, the day she was to leave.  The train was just beginning to pull out of the station as Lily, panting, clambered on board.  Exhausted, she leaned against the wall, thanking God for the kindness of the strangers who had hoisted her trunk onto the train for her, barely keeping her from missing it.  She pulled her trunk down the hall behind her, searching for a compartment with room for her and people that looked nice.  As she passed a compartment where two hulking boys were talking to a smaller, platinum-blond kid with a high-and-mighty expression on his face, Lily finally realized just how little she knew about this place.

"What am I going to do?" she thought in a panic.  "I don't know anybody and I know even less about magic!  The only reason I even got onto the platform was because of luck!  If I hadn't leaned against that barrier to think, I'd still be in the station!"

Suddenly, she stopped dead in her tracks, all her worried thoughts evaporating.  The compartment she had just reached was almost full, but had room for just one more person.  Inside was a boy with shoulder length black hair and black eyes, his hair tied back to show his silver earring, an Egyptian ankh.  Sitting next to him were two girls with long blond curls and bright blue eyes.  The boy across from them nearest the door had light brown hair and gray eyes, but sitting on his other side…  Lilly would know that messy black mop anywhere.  Her heart leapt as she timidly slid the door open.

"James?" she asked.  He leaned forward in his seat to see who had called him, then stopped and stared at her in shock.

"Lily?  Ho…How…How are you here?  You're a Muggle!"

Now it was Lily's turn to be confused.  "Muggle?" she thought. "What on Earth is a Muggle?"

Before she could speak, though, the black-eyed boy jabbed James in the ribs with his wand.  "Of course she's not a Muggle, you idiot.  If she was non-magic, how could she have gotten onto the train?"

Standing up, he walked over to her and stuck out his hand.  When she reached to shake it, however, he took her hand and raised it to his lips, kissing her fingers.  "Sirius Orion Black at your service Miss…?"

"Lily Evans."

"Well, I would like to say, Miss Lily Evans, that meeting a lady so lovely as yourself has considerably improved what was already turning out to be an excellent day," he stated, grinning mischievously.  "Now, while my dear Jamesy boy recovers, I should like to introduce you to my lovely friends Chelsea and Kelsey McKinnon…"

The two blond girls nodded to her with huge grins.  "Don't worry," laughed one. (Chelsea perhaps?)  "We're not all like him.  Sirius is just…"

"Weird…" inserted the other girl.

"Annoying…"

"Egotistical…"

"And a _major_ flirt," finished the first.

Sirius fixed them with a haughty glare as he turned the giggling Lily towards the brown haired boy.

"…and this is my friend Remus Lupin, who, as you can see, is not nearly so lovely as the other two."

"It's nice to meet you Lily," Remus said quietly.  "Please try not to be scared off by Sirius.  I need a friend who is at least somewhat sane."

Sirius just smirked.  "Who wants sane friends?" he asked as he plopped back into his seat. "So, Jamesy boy, you better yet?" he continued conversationally.

"I'm fine," James snapped, glaring at him.  He turned to Lily as an injured look came over his face.  "Lils, why didn't you tell me you were coming to Hogwarts?  Were you just going to leave me?"

"Oh, don't look at me like that," she said.  "I didn't tell you for the exact same reason why you didn't tell me.  I thought you were a… what was that word again?"

"Muggle?" supplied Remus.

"Yeah, that one!  I couldn't tell you I was a witch, and I couldn't bear to tell you I was going away."

"Alright, alright," interrupted Sirius.  "Now that that question is out of the way, I have one."

"Why am I not surprised?" muttered one of the twins.

Ignoring her, Sirius plowed on. "Since you're obviously great friends with the lovely Lily here, James, why have I never met her?"

"Really James," Lily chimed in, "how could you not introduce me to someone as incredibly sexy as Sirius here?"

Once the laughter died down, James started to explain.  "Well you see," he began, "Sirius has this little problem.  He can never act like a Muggle.  No matter what, he always ends up bringing up hexes, or vampires, or Quidditch…"

Lily wiped away the tears that had come with the memories.  Those happy days, those carefree times, were gone.  They would never come again, so long as the Dark Lord ran free.

_Now you're all grown up inside of me_

_Oh how fast those moments flee_

They had grown up when they were not looking.  It seemed almost as if they had been children one day and adults the next.  Snowball fights had turned into duels, and chasing fireflies was replaced by hunting down spies.  Voldemort had stolen some of the best years of their lives.  When they should have been learning jinxes and charms for pranks, they were instead absorbed in in-depth studies on the Unforgivable Curses and spells for protection against the Dark Arts.

_Once we watched a lazy world go by_

_Now the days seem to fly_

_Life is brief, but when it's gone_

_Love goes on and on_

When they were children, each day had lasted for a lifetime.  They could spend hours fishing in the creek behind their houses, climbing in trees, or just laying out under the stars.  Time had no meaning; time didn't matter.  There was always enough time for everything.

When they started school, things changed.  Everything followed a schedule, having a certain time slot in which it took place.  Suddenly, there were never enough hours in the day to get everything done.

And now… now it seemed to Lily as if time had run out.   Everyday more people were found dead.  The McKinnons, the twins who had been Lily's best friends since that first day at Hogwarts, had died just a week ago, murdered in the flat that they shared in London.  So many people were gone.

And now… now Voldemort was in Lily's living room, dueling with her husband.  Lily listened desperately, trying to gain some idea of what was going on.  Straining to hear through the muffled shouts, Lily caught only two words, spoken in the high, cruel voice of the Dark Lord.  "Avada Kedavra."

The tears fell again.  He was gone.  Her husband, her love… her James.  Now Harry was all she had left.  She would do anything to protect him.  He was her last living loved one.

_Love will live_

_Love will last_

_Love goes on and on_

Memories began to flood her mind again, and suddenly, in the midst of her grief, Lily realized why she had never hated James during their Hogwarts years.

She had come so close so many times.  He had been so arrogant, so self-centered, so… so… egotistical!  Playing pranks on anyone and everyone, tormenting people who had never done anything to bother him in the first place…  Potter, as she had known him then, would do anything to get attention.  He was always carrying a Snitch around in his pocket, letting it go only to catch it back a second before it escaped.  Potter was a show-off, constantly trying to catch some girl's eye.  And the girls!  Well, they made matters even worse.  James could always be seen snogging some little blond slut, for all of them would have killed to date James Potter.

For some reason, however, he kept asking Lily out, and she kept turning him down flat.  Until seventh year, that is.  That year, James no longer acted like king of the universe.  He was back to being the old James, the sweet, sensitive, caring boy Lily had grown up with.  That was why Lily had never been able to hate him.  She knew deep down that the real James was not the egocentric jerk, but the boy she had fallen in love with years before.  It is hard to hate somebody that you had loved since the day you were born, when your parents laid you side by side in the same crib.

_Once we watched a lazy world go by_

_Now the days seem to fly_

As Voldemort burst into the nursery, Lily stood strong, a solid barrier between him and her son, her last reminder of her soul mate and her only child.

"Not Harry! Not Harry!" she screamed.  "Please… I'll do anything…"

"Stand aside. Stand aside girl!" shouted Voldemort as he raised his wand.

No, she couldn't.  She wouldn't.  Lily could not just give up her son, the tiny child that she sang to sleep each night.  The baby boy that had wrapped himself around her heart like his father had.

"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"

Not Harry… her baby who had lived for barely over a year.  He did not deserve to die now, not when his whole life was still in front of him.  He was to go to Hogwarts, to play Quidditch, to suffer through potions and excel in transfiguration and charms.  He was to get married and to have children, to live with a woman he truly loved.  Lily could not let him die, yet still Voldemort shouted, "Stand aside you silly girl, stand aside now!"

"Not Harry, please no… take me, kill me instead.  Not Harry! Please… have mercy… have mercy…"

Lily was still pleading when the killing curse hit her.

Suddenly, she was off to one side, watching in shock as her lifeless body crumpled to the floor.  Sobbing, she watched Voldemort turn his wand to her son.  Strong arms immediately encircled her waist, drawing her back against a muscular chest.

"Shhhhh Lils," a voice whispered in her ear.  "It'll be ok."

Glancing back, she saw a ghostly James, who just smiled at her.  He gently turned her back to the scene unfolding in front of them.  Together they watched as a bean of green light shot towards Harry.  Lily gasped in amazement when the beam reflected off of him, destroying everything nearby in a great explosion.  The Death Eaters flanking their lord turned to dust as Voldemort disappeared in a burst of green flame.  A thin silver wisp rose from the flames, streaming off into the starry sky with a scream.

"How?" she asked. "How did he do it?"

"It's because you died for him, Lils," James whispered.  "Because you died for love."

_Life is brief, but when it's gone_

_Love goes on and on_


End file.
